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Happy Fourth of July!
And if you’re not in the US, or simply don’t celebrate the Fourth, well — Happy Day in July!
If you’re a skittish dog or cat living in the US, I would like to extend my deepest apologies for the horrible boom-boom noises in the sky. I know this is not your favorite day. But it will soon be over.
The cats are probably going to hide under the bed. Bailey is probably going to bark at the fireworks. Hopefully they die down by midnight. There’s a park a block and a half away from my house so it’s not just authorized fireworks going on. People have been setting off fireworks and firecrackers there for days and it will probably continue next weekend.
I can report now the Independence Day: Resurgence was bad. So bad it’s good. I would recommend it. But YMMV. Not everyone likes cheesy action/adventure movies like I do.
For AbominableSnowPickle,
A ragdoll and her baby
@ skybison & axe-danger
The whole thing as to whether Christians nicked pagan ideas or pagan converts held on to their traditions is really interesting. There’s no clear cut answer. It’s quite the mix. Culdee Christianity is a great example. It’s also worth looking at the common church foundation myth of the devil moving the building stones overnight; and what that might represent.
In the case of Christmas though it may be that it’s neither.
There’s a legitimate school of thought that the 25 December date may originate in the early church belief (itself based on Judaic/Classical ideas) that righteous men always died on the date of their conception.
One early suggested date for Easter minus nine months gives the date we now use.
I always thought that the reason we use 25 December rather than the solstice on 21 December is because of the influence of Mithraism.
@skybison
1)hence the weasel quotes 🙂
2)how were they converted? Historically speaking, probability suggests the vast majority of converts weren’t… enthusiastic. Even those that wouldn’t have been literally forced to switch probably had massive, crushing, social pressure put on them by the more influential classes as well as their peers
I’m just talking outta my ass, and my understanding of appropriation is rudimentary at best. You’re probably right 🙂
@ EJ
The link between Mithraism and Christianity is another convoluted area. The only sure thing seems to be the design of churches. Although Mithraism originated before Christianity they were contemporaneous for quite some time; so there was a lot of cross fertilisation both ways.
You ever been to the Temple of Mithras down on Lombard Street? There’s a great archeological tale about that. When they excavated they found various ‘prayers’; bit like how people stick things in the Wailing Wall. One was wishing a hex on someone. Apparently this guy had nicked a ring. The supplicant blamed the fact his ex-friend had converted to Christianity. Decades later they were excavating a site up North. Among the finds was a ring. It was interesting in that it had been altered to change a pagan motif to a Christian one. The owner’s name had also been changed. Guess what the names were?
@Axecalibur : as far as I know, the vast majority of convert were voluntary, or even enthusiast. Christianity proposed something that looked much better than the old religions.
@weirdwoodtreehugger
Oh! How lovely^.^ I need 12 of them!
Here’s Q, my snowshoe boy. He also goes by Scooter, because he zooms around the house a lot, deviating from his path only to bonk your ankles with his head^.^
http://i.imgur.com/caNaDZI.jpg
@ ohlmann & axedanger
Within the Roman Empire Christianity was attractive because it was a mystery cult that, unlike others such as Mithraism or Isis, was open to anyone regardless of status and didn’t require a subscription fee.
Outside the Empire it was a bit more complicated; but in its early days it was seen as a bit of a low status religion. Its appeal was to the impoverished masses, so social pressure was actually against converting. It was only after Constatine that it became acceptable. Then it became fashionable.
It’s not until that time that the old religions were designated as ‘pagan’; the word then having connotations along the lines of ‘yokel’ or ‘bumpkin’ to differentiate from the sophisticated urban preference for Christianity.
@AbominableSnowPickle
Q is adorable and definitely looks like he could live up to his name and put humanity on trial someday.
Happy American Canada Day!
@kupo
That’s one of the origins of his name! His shelter name was ‘Q-T-Pie,’ and Q just fit him, there was no need to change it. His brother (who isn’t a snowshoe) is named Bodhi and he’s the strong silent type^.^
@Ohlmann + Alan
One learns summat new…
My cats don’t give a shit about fireworks and firecrackers and such. It’s probably because they were all raised in this neighborhood, where people start making things go bang in May and continue until, presumably, they actually run out. Also, the big fireworks show may be seen by walking the quarter mile to the end of our street. You could see it from our porch if there weren’t trees, and you can see the New Year’s show that way. One of the cats sat in the window, and was more interested in the moths than the loud bangs.
I know it’s a day late, but I was really pleasantly surprised by this little clip: Patriotism
I had fun yesterday! Ate brisket on rolls, also nachos. Other than that, I mostly played the demo to Bravely Second because I didn’t know anyone at the house I was at.
The “barbecue” holidays are difficult for me. I’m not particularly patriotic, but I love to grill and hang out in the backyard with family.
However, I don’t have a backyard or a place to grill any more, and my family is mostly dead now. So I get sad and angry, and just try to get through the day without glaring too hard at the happy families.